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Wednesday, February 22, 2017

My quest to use papers from my stash goes on! A couple of years back, 7 Gypsies® came out with their American Vintage Collection™. The Company sent sample packages to Crew members and I have used the papers sparingly, mostly to enhance other "Postale" projects.

Recently, I saw a project that would allow me to use practically the entire collection in one small design.

This project is based on a design by Alexandra M. Credit where credit is due! The link to her tutorial is at the end of this post!

On The Road Again - Mini Stamp Album

I used papers from the 7 Gypsies® Postale Collection to cover the exterior of my project! The exterior of the mini stamp album and the interior of the box are covered with "map" paper.

The exterior of the mini stamp album and the interior of the box are covered with "map" paper from the Collection. The "Ring Pull" on the front makes it easier to remove the album from its box! I added a simple brad to make the hardware more interesting.

I had fun creating different stamp layouts for each page.

The "Stamps Page" in the American Vintage Collection has a nice selection of stamps so each page can be unique. I followed the tutorial and created 7 pages but you can create fewer if you desire.

I created pockets on some of my backing pages to hold additional ephemera. I used gold paper clips to add interest. I used Ephemera from the 7 Gypsies® Mini Ephemera, GYPSY Ephemera.

One of my many new "crafting loves" is using hardware embellishments on my constructed/engineered projects. I am always amazed at how these simple additions can elevate design. I was ecstatic to find the little snap closers for the front of my box. The handle on the top is by Prima® "Frank Garcia™Memory Hardware Collection.

I was also fortunate to find these really inexpensive small hinges. I had larger ones that really detracted from the project aesthetics. Hardware gives the project a clean, professional look, IMHO.

Saturday, February 18, 2017

2017 is my year of creative exploration! So far, I have found two new loves: Gelli Printing and Bookbinding. A few years ago, I created a small book using Graphic 45's® A Ladies' Diary Collection and wanted to explore bookbinding in more depth. This is my first effort and I was pretty pleased with the outcome. I have started a new book and, hopefully, my techniques have improved

A STEAMPUNK JOURNAL

I used the Graphic 45® Collections:

Steampunk Debutant and Steampunk Spells.

The book is composed of 14 signatures and 4 Dividers. There are two signatures before and after each divider and one signature inside each divider.

I use these beads sparingly but thought they were perfect for this book. I wanted to cover the strings from the binding in a fun way.

I added extra stitches across the bottom to draw my strings together because I did not want to put beads on the bottom.

The front and back inside flaps are convenient for tags and other miscellaneous materials.

I plan to embellish the pages in my journal as I use them!

DIVIDERS

Here are some shots of my dividers and how I used the G45® papers to decorate them.

Tuesday, February 14, 2017

The word Heart (s) can be used but no heart shaped die cuts or rubber stamps, etc.

I am hosting this week at Shopping Our Stash and so I must take responsibility for the challenge theme! Oddly enough, I struggled with my own theme. I know I had something else in mind for my project but cannot, for the life of me, remember what! Anymahoo, here is my Romantic Valentine Card! I made it for my son-in-law to give to my daughter and then forgot to give it to him when they were here yesterday! He can give it to her on another special day!

VINTAGE ROMANCE

I really this beautiful LemonCraftraft™ "Anna Zaprzelska†" House of Roses Time Flies paper. They were in one of the "Your Passion, Your Art" Main Kits from The Flying Unicorn™ (sadly, they are out of business. I have held on to these papers for almost two years but, staying true to my resolve to actually craft with my supplies, I took a deep breath and CUT!

To add more interest, I used a scrap strip of card stock as my closer.

I secured back end of the closer with a decorative stamped image. I did not want to cut beautiful. The pretty paper on the corner is the end of the paper I used to create my interior pocket.

I created my interior tag pocket by fussy cutting the rose pattern at the bottom of one of my 12"x12" sheets. I created a tag using the green base cs and the gingham pattern. The gingham design is the reverse side of the rose printed paper. The smaller greetings journal card is from the Graphic 45® Nature's Sketchbook Journaling & Ephemera Collection.

I used my 2"circle punch to cut out a small rose pattern. The edges were distressed (Walnut Stain) and I attached it to the tag using clear 3D Zots™

This embossed Floral pattern in on the inside of the top flap. Although is does not show in the photos, it works well and adds both depth and texture to the interior.

Close up of the Fussy cut interior tag pocket!

"House of Roses-Time Flies"

Thanks for stopping by! I would so love to see your projects in our challenge this week! My teammates created some wonderful inspiration projects! Take a look! https://shoppingourstash.blogspot.com

Yes, I am playing with my homemade gelli Printing Plate again! I am simply addicted and there is little need to try and pretend that I am not. Especially since week after week you poor people will be subjected to my amateur attempts to perfect, or at least to greatly improve, my skills in this new artistic discipline.

Click on Images to see Mixed Media Details!

Me, Myself, and I had a rather heated debate over the decision to distress or to not distress the edges. In the end, "I" won out and left the edges of the border white. In real life, the visual impact is awesome! I took these pictures with my tablet and they are not the best. Sorry!

I like the continuity I get using swatches of my gelli prints to embellish the card interior.

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This was another stash clearing/using project! I am slowly depleting my twelve-year-old cache of Neenah papers that were in inventory when we closed our Graphics business.

Wednesday, February 1, 2017

Hello, Crafty Peeples!It's time to get back to work at Altered Eclectics. We are mixed media, upcycling fanatics who enjoy being inspired by like-minded crafters. So stop by and leave your project in our challenge. While you are there, we hope you will be able to draw inspiration from our DT makes.

I continue the quest to increase my crafting skills and enlarge my comfort zone (or perhaps create new ones.) Mastering the use of crackle medium is my newest quest and I was super stoked by the way these turned out! I was inspired by our fearless leader, Elaine. Her crackle bottles are just fabulous!

The short-necked brown bottle usually holds my favorite probiotic drink. I have tons of these to create bud vases. I want to give them to my S-I-L to sell at her church fundraising event!

The Grecian

The Roman

The Spartan

IRL this is such a beautiful bud vase. I keep this one on my dressing table. I will attempt to create a vase close to this for the fundraiser!Flora and Fauna

The fun part of upcycling these bottles is playing around with the paints, glue and crackle mediums. I usually create my first layer of crackle using Elmer's glue. After that, I add layers of paint and various crackle medium until I get the result that matches what I see in my mind's eye. I like stamping on the bottles, as well. The labels are usually scraps of design paper leftover from other projects.

Thanks for stopping by and we would love to see your altered projects in our challenge!

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Effective December 1, 2009, ftc guidelines require bloggers to disclose any time they are compensated for endorsing or reviewing products or services.

I have posted projects containing components i have received for free or received perks in return for posts on my blog. I would never make or endorse misleading statements regarding any product or service used in the operation of this blog.

if you have questions regarding any product or service used on my blog, please contact me at cmalkah@yahoo.com